Girl on Fire
by avaiara
Summary: Somer is the only five-bar in the FAYZ, and the only person who Caine can't kill. Her powers make her both feared and adored. I'm really bad at summaries, sorry! Setting is between Lies and Plague. Please read and review!


**The ****_Gone _****series has been one of my favorites for a long time now, so I hope you enjoy! Setting is between ****_Lies_**** and ****_Plague._**

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Somer stood on the front porch of her house, smoking a cigarette and watching the sun rise. She limited herself to only smoking very early in the morning and sometimes late at night, because cigarettes were rarer than sodas and she didn't want to draw attention to the fact that she still had a whole half-pack left. This was the FAYZ—she'd seen people kill and get killed over much less.

The house she was living in was a beachfront one, with a sprawling view of the ocean and surrounding cliffs. Back in the days before the FAYZ, it must've been worth a fortune for the view alone. It was the perfect house for Somer because it was only ten minutes away from the plaza, but also tucked away in a small neighborhood so that it couldn't be easily found—in fact, only four people knew where she lived. Sam, Astrid, Edilio, and Lana. Not even Albert, although he probably had plenty of people out looking for her.

Somer was a five-bar. The only one in Perdido Beach, making her the most powerful person of the FAYZ. Even Sam and Caine were only four-bars. Little Pete, well, he was probably more, but only a few people knew about him and he didn't have any control over his powers anyway. Besides, he'd never stood up to Caine, Drake, the coyotes, or the gaiaphage, so nobody really counted him. Somer had. She'd fought beside Sam and Edilio and Brianna and Dekka, so she had a certain respect among the other kids, even though most of them were still wary of her.

She had the power of fire. She could make liquid fire stream out of her hands at the slightest thought. The fire could range from a tiny birthday-candle sized flame when she snapped her fingers, to a raging inferno not unlike a tornado. Months ago, when she'd still been living at Coates and hadn't had full control over her powers, she'd lost her temper at a boy. It'd been over something stupid, a carton of pudding or yogurt or whatever. But he'd gotten all up in her face and she'd lost it.

The explosion had killed six people.

Caine and Drake had tried to cement her hands after that. But every time they tried, she just burned right through the concrete. Too strong, too powerful for cement, which made Caine very worried. Then Diana read at her five bars, and he'd had gone crazy. They'd fought—nothing big, but enough to collapse the dean's house and burn through five cars— and finally had come to a mutual agreement. Somer would leave Coates, so that Caine would stay in charge, and in return he would stop trying to kill her. It was a win-win situation for her. She knew Caine couldn't kill her, even if he tried, so at least she'd gotten herself a little peace.

She'd come into town, introduced herself to Sam and Astrid, and settled down in a house. Her first house, which'd been near the school. When Caine and Drake came to take over Perdido Beach, they'd left her alone as per Caine's promise, and instead terrorized the other kids. Then somehow, Sam had taken down Drake, and Caine was forced to retreat and hide in Coates. It was then that Somer had shown Sam the true extent of her power.

She'd set his desk on fire.

Then Somer told him and Astrid about the explosion, about the five-bar reading, and the cementing. They'd introduced her to Brianna, Dekka, Lana, and Edilio, and agreed to keep her powers a secret.

She'd fought alongside them in the big Thanksgiving battle, although with a gun, since she hadn't gone public with her powers yet. At the power plant standoff, she'd fought again as one of Edilio's soldiers. It wasn't until Zil's hate crews set the town on fire that she'd finally discovered the true extent of her power. Somer could control fire. Any fire, no matter how big or small. She could control where the fire went, like it was some obedient burning snake, and she could control what burned and what didn't. She could put fire out with a single thought.

Because of her, the town was saved. But people still avoided her. She was a freak, after all, and the most powerful of all the freaks so therefore the most hated. Human Crew graffiti appeared all over her house at night, and there were taunts and jeers and whispers wherever she went. Someone went as far as to throw a brick through her front window. People came to her all the time with burns and other injuries, too stupid to understand that she only dealt with actual flames. Finally, out of frustration, she'd set her house on fire—a controlled fire, of course—and moved, not telling anyone where she went and only going outside when she needed to.

And because she was the biggest, baddest freak of them all, nobody really ever denied her anything. You didn't say no to the face of someone who could potentially save your life or burn you on the spot, depending on her mood. Food, water, weapons—anything was hers for the taking. Which was how Somer had come across the pack of cigarettes. The girls who'd sold it to her had taken a mere five 'Bertos, along with their ensured safety if there was ever another fire.

Somer finished her cigarette, and ground the stub under the heel of her boot. The sun was already over the horizon, steadily rising higher, and she knew that in an hour or so everybody would be up and Perdido Beach would be crawling with anti-freaks. If she wanted to go out at all, now was the time. She went back in her house to make sure that her cigarettes were safely locked away before exiting out the back door.

Nobody walked around in Perdido Beach at any time of the day without a weapon, but Somer didn't need one. Her hands were enough.

She cut through backyards and alleyways, avoiding the main streets. It was a quick walk to the plaza, where people were already starting to set up the Market. The fish stand would be empty until Quinn's haul came in later, but there was still produce and meat and a few precious canned goods. As per the usual, people stopped talking the second she walked by, only to resume when they assumed she was out of earshot. She fought the urge to set their noses aflame and instead settled on buying a cabbage, two artichokes, and a mystery meat steak.

Sam and Astrid were waiting at her house when she got back, along with Little Pete.

"You guys hungry? I just went shopping." Somer led them into the kitchen, where she lit the stove with a casual wave of her hand. Little Pete coughed. "Breakfast?"

Once they'd finished eating, Astrid got down to business. "So we're going to be out in the fields today. Edilio's arranged for all the pickers to do their jobs somewhere else, but we can always count on a crowd."

"You okay with that?" Sam shot Somer a concerned look. "I know the past few weeks have been kind of tough on you."

"On everyone," Somer corrected him. "And don't worry about me. I want to try this as much as you guys do. I mean, flying? I could be the next Superwoman." That got a smile from Sam.

They went outside, where Edilio was waiting, sitting on the hood of a black SUV. The windows were, thankfully, heavily tinted, and Somer climbed in. "All this, just for me?" she joked. She knew the primary mode of transport for mostly everybody was on foot, and there wasn't much gas left to use on driving. Astrid slid in next to her, practically dragging Little Pete along, and Sam got in front with Edilio.

Somer was surprised to see that Dekka and Lana were also in the backseat. Lana's role in today's mission was obvious, but Dekka's—not so much. "So this is where you live," Dekka said, peering out the windows at the house. "Nice view."

"Thanks, that's why I chose it." Somer respected Dekka to a certain degree, since she was a three-bar and one of Sam's best fighters. But there was just something about Dekka that made her seem cold and unapproachable.

There was a blur outside the car, and Brianna skidded into view. "Coast is clear, Albert's been told about the car. He was griping about tax prices or whatever when I left." She flashed Edilio a thumbs-up. "We're good to go."

"Great. See you in the fields, Breeze." She gave him a sassy little salute before taking off. Edilio started the engine, and the car lurched forward.

Edilio drove fast for the FAYZ's standards, but in reality it was no more than twenty or thirty miles per hour. They'd barely made it to the highway when the car was surrounded by kids. Edilio pressed on the gas pedal and tried to accelerate past the mob, but it was impossible without running some of them over. "Great, what now?"

Sam rolled down his window, and Somer could hear the deluge of questions.

"Where're you guys going?"

"What's with the car?"

"Is something wrong? What's happening?"

"Who's in there?"

Then came the complaints and accusations.

"Zil's tagged my house, I can't live there anymore!"

"We're low on water!"

"Quinn hasn't come back with fish yet, we're starving!"

"I thought we were low on gas, why're you out with the car?"

"Okay, people, enough." Sam held out his hands, and everybody instantly fell silent. Everyone had seen the things Sam's hands could do, and nobody was dumb enough to push him. "Look. We're just taking a field trip out to the fields today to experiment with our powers a bit. It's not a big deal."

"Is Somer in there? Is that why you're taking the car?"

"Yes, Somer is here, but—" Wrong thing to say. Sam couldn't even finish his sentence over the sudden roar of the kids, all of them clamoring to see Somer, Perdido Beach's only five-bar and the only person more powerful than Caine and Drake and even Sam himself.

Somer shrank back against the seat, and Edilio grinned. "You're like a celebrity."

A miniature whirlwind broke through the crowd, and Brianna appeared, standing in front of the SUV. "HEY!" she shouted, waving her skinny arms up and down. "Listen up!"

The noise quieted, but only enough for the Breeze to be heard.

"On the count of three, I'm going to barrel through all of you who are dumb enough not to move," Brianna yelled. "And when I say barrel through you, I mean right _through_ you. So take my advice and get out of the way." She tensed up, ready to run. "Three! Two! One!"

The crowd broke apart, clearing a path for both Breeze and the SUV.

"Thanks, Breeze." Sam waved his hand, and Breeze sped off. Edilio pushed down on the gas pedal and they shot forward down the highway.

Astrid twisted around to look out through the back window. "I hope you're good with crowds, Somer, because they're following us and I doubt any of them want to miss the show."

Somer grimaced, and focused on staring out her window.

The field Edilio had picked for today was nothing more than a big expanse of rock and dirt. Sinder, the Goth girl who had a talent for making things grow, had been told specifically not to plant anything here. Somer stepped out of the car, already feeling the heat and sun and wishing she'd thought to bring water. Lana and Dekka climbed out after her, and Dekka was carrying a large cooler.

Already, pickers from other fields were abandoning their jobs and coming to stand around the edge of the field. The faster runners from the mob earlier were also just arriving, clamoring to get the best spots. Somer tried to ignore them and focused on listening to the instructions Astrid was giving her. "Okay, Somer, so you, me, and Dekka are starting on this end. Sam, Edilio, and Lana will be at the other end. We've already gone over all the schematics, so now it's just a matter of putting everything together. I've calculated all the aerodynamics of the situation, and—"

Somer was no longer listening, instead staring at where Sam and the others were standing, impossibly far away. "Why are they starting so far?"

"As I was saying, I've done the calculations and you should be able to go at least a hundred feet before you run out of steam." Astrid looked at Somer's hands, as if expecting her to have sprouted jetpacks or something. "We're just waiting on the Breeze now."

There was a smear of color, and Brianna practically materialized at Astrid's elbow. "No one waits for the Breeze. The Breeze waits for everyone." She cocked her head. "That could be my catchphrase."

A solid ring of kids, three deep on every side, surrounded the field. So much for trying to sneak out of town incognito. Somer sighed and turned to face Astrid. "Ready whenever you are."

"Okay then." Astrid and Dekka took a few steps back. She lifted her hand, signaling to Sam that they were about to start.

Somer looked at her palms, flexed her fingers. This whole experiment had been Astrid's idea. That scary smart brain of hers had worked through thermonuclear physics or whatever, and she'd come up with the idea that Somer could use her powers to fly. In theory, it was simple. Somer could control the flames from her palms, so heating it up to nearly 100,000 degrees and not burning anything else would be child's play. Then, Somer would be able to use the resulting energy to propel herself up and forward for a short span of time.

So in words, the plan sounded easy enough. But the need to have Lana present did nothing for Somer's confidence.

She aimed her palms down at the ground, and a hush fell over the crowd of kids. It was absolutely silent; the air felt thick enough to cut with a knife. Everyone wanted to see the almighty five-bar attempt to fly.

A stream of flame shot from her hands, hitting the dirt but not burning it. She increased the fire, building up more pressure and power. But her feet were still firmly planted on the ground.

"No, no, you can't do that." Astrid hurried forward, and Somer put the fire out. "We went over this, Somer. You need to, in simple terms, _blast_ from the ground. All your energy in one burst. Like a supernova explosion."

Somer winced at the word _explosion._

"Try again." Astrid backed away to a safe distance, and Somer again aimed her palms down at the ground.

She'd only done a supernova-worthy explosion twice. Once, when she'd lost her temper at Coates. And the second time, out in a field like this one, to demonstrate for Sam and Astrid. The fire had completely obliterated the field, wiping out all the grass and dirt and turning the rocks to lava, but she'd made sure that nobody in the field had gotten burned.

This time, her explosion was smaller, more focused, more controlled. She blasted at the ground, and the force propelled her in an arc fifty feet up. She could hear the screams of excitement from the kids. But the only problem was, once in the air, the same small blast wasn't enough to keep her moving forward. Somer yelled in surprise as she plummeted towards the ground.

"Dekka!" Astrid screamed, and suddenly gravity around Somer was canceled. She floated in the air, her palms still glowing with fire, as Dekka carefully lowered her to the ground.

"Thanks, Dekka." Somer flopped down on the ground, exhausted. Even a blast as small as that one had completely drained whatever energy breakfast had given her, and she felt weak and shaky on her feet.

Astrid reached into the cooler and handed Somer a piece of boiled fish. "That was good, but once in the air, you need to increase your power to keep moving. Try more fire, more power. But keep it controlled, though. First signs of danger, put out the fire and Dekka'll bring you down."

Somer finished the last of her fish and got up. "Got it."

She took her place at the end of the field again, aimed her palms, and blasted off the same as before. This time, once in the air, she increased the force of the flames behind her, and it catapulted her forward. She had no mechanism of steering, so she could only hope she was headed towards Lana and Sam and Edilio.

"More power!" she heard Astrid screaming from the ground, but Somer knew that if she increased her power anymore she risked a full supernova explosion. But even as she thought it, she felt herself losing altitude rapidly, and she hit the ground hard and out of control, tumbling and skidding and finally coming to a stop ten feet from where she'd met the ground.

Somer rolled over, breathing hard and staring up at the sky. Her right arm and leg were definitely broken, and the screaming pain in her side meant a couple of ribs were cracked too. No doubt her face was a mess of cuts and bruises. She could hear footsteps as the others ran towards her, and the whispers from the crowd as they talked excitedly about what they'd just witnessed.

"Hey." Lana appeared at Somer's side, and she laid her hands on Somer's broken leg. Instantly, the pain receded.

Astrid knelt down as she consulted her notebook, the pages falling over Somer's face. "You did well up until you were in the air, but you didn't give it your all. What happened?"

Somer shrugged, a gesture that sent waves of pain radiating through her shoulder. "I couldn't."

"Why not?" Astrid pressed.

"Hey, calm down." Sam laid his hand on his girlfriend's shoulder.

"Because the last time I went all out, and I mean _actually_ all out, I killed six people," Somer snapped. "That's why."

"Yes, but you couldn't control it then." Astrid talked slowly and clearly, as if she was explaining the whole thing to a child. "Now you can control it, right?"

"Honestly, Astrid? I don't know." Lana finished healing her arm, and shakily Somer got to her feet. She gingerly tested out her leg, wary of the pain, but Lana's healing had been complete. "I need a minute." She pushed past them and walked back to the SUV, where Dekka was standing.

"Nice try," Dekka said, smirking a little. "Although maybe next time, a little more flying and a little less faceplanting."

Somer rolled her eyes and reached for a bottle of water in the cooler. "Don't even start." She took a long sip.

"You know, if you had a little more power—"

"Yes, I do know." Somer whirled around. "I do know that if I went out of control, I could fly. But honestly, is it really worth it? I could kill people. I've done it before, and it could happen again."

Dekka didn't even blink. "I know, Somer. I was there."

Somer had forgotten that Dekka had come from Coates, too. Of course she'd been there when the explosion had happened. Everyone at Coates had. "I don't exactly want a repeat of that."

"It won't be, because you can control it this time." Dekka stared out past Somer's shoulder, to where Brianna was zipping around the field keeping kids back from the perimeter.

"How do you know?" Somer asked bitterly. "How do you know I won't just burn everybody?"

"Because if you do, I'll kill you." Dekka winked. "But no pressure."

Somer smiled. Finally, someone wasn't treating her like she was a lab experiment. "Thanks, Dekka." She finished her water and started back towards the field.

Astrid was waiting, making little checkmarks in her notebook. Down at the other end of the field, Sam, Edilio, and Lana were in position. Another hush fell over the field as everybody's eyes zeroed in on Somer. Astrid didn't even look up. "Ready to try again?"

"Yeah." Somer cracked her knuckles and stretched her neck from side to side. "I think I'll try supernova this time."

"Good." Astrid lifted her hand in the air, still not looking up from her notebook. "If you can get this to work, Somer, it'll be legendary."

"Yeah, whatever." She aimed her palms down at the ground again. "Ready when you are."

"On your count." Astrid hurried backwards, into the safe zone.

Somer squeezed her eyes shut, and blasted off. For a split second, she hovered in the air—and then she put more power into her hands and shot forward.

_Supernova, Somer. You can do this._

She felt the energy in her hands rise even more, to the brink of explosion. It was always at this brink, this edge, where she stopped and turned her powers down. The results of her supernova so far had been disastrous. But this time, she just tuned her powers up even further and felt herself move faster.

She wasn't diving towards the ground, or even losing altitude. She was flying! She was really, truly flying!

Somewhere in the distance she could hear shocked screams and yells, and she looked around blindly to find the source of the excitement. But she was moving too fast to see anything besides smears of color here and there. She looked down at her own hands, her own body, and yelled out in shock.

She was on fire!

Not just her hands, like it usually was. Her whole body. Her legs, arms, feet, torso, probably even her head! But it didn't hurt—of course, it never hurt—and her clothes were catching on fire. She was doing it! She was using her supernova, and she was controlling it.

Up ahead, she could just make out three figures that were probably Sam, Edilio, and Lana, so she slowed the force of fire flowing from her hands. Slowly, slowly, she dropped towards the ground, hitting the ground on her feet and lightly skipping the last couple of steps.

She'd done it!

There was an explosion of cheers, and Sam and Lana and Edilio came rushing towards her. "You did it, Somer," Sam said hoarsely, patting her on the back. Edilio just shook his head in wonder and said, "_Madre Dios" _like he always did, and Lana was Lana.

Somer nearly fell forward, she was so exhausted. She'd only traveled about a hundred feet, and yet she felt completely wiped out, more tired than she'd ever been in her life. "Thanks, guys," she muttered. Her legs buckled and she sagged to the ground, wanting nothing more than to curl up and sleep for a year or two.

Astrid and Dekka came running over, and Brianna appeared in a blur. "Wow, you were almost as fast as the Breeze," Brianna said jauntily. "But not quite as fast."

"Well, good job," Astrid said briskly, trying and failing to conceal the huge smile spreading across her faace. "Let's get back into town so everyone can go back to their jobs, or else Albert'll throw a fit."

Somer was too tired to move, so Sam picked her up and carried her back to the SUV. "You did real good," Breeze was saying, zipping in circles around Sam. "Maybe sometime you can race the Breeze. Haha, that's funny, someone racing the Breeze. The Breeze beats everyone."

As they neared the SUV, parked on the edge of the field, Somer could hear the crowd talking excitedly about what'd just happened.

"Did you see that? Holy cow!"

"She was flying! Flying like Superman!"

"She was on fire, too! Like, completely on fire!"

Edilio laughed. "Looks like you're the girl on fire now."

Somer's eyes felt heavy and she was already dosing off, but she managed to hear Edilio's words. _The girl on fire._

She felt herself smile. Yes, that sounded just fine.

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**I'm not sure if I want to continue on with this story, but if I do I'll be updating weekly. Please let me know if you guys want me to continue!**


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